Chandigarh: The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Tuesday filed a chargesheet before the special CBI court in Chandigarh in connection with the alleged misappropriation of funds belonging to the Chandigarh Renewable Energy Science and Technology Promotion Society (CREST).
The chargesheet names 13 accused, including five officials of IDFC First Bank, two public servants associated with CREST under the Chandigarh administration, four private individuals, and two shell entities. All the accused are currently lodged in judicial custody.
According to the CBI, the accused have been charged with offences related to criminal conspiracy, criminal breach of trust, cheating, forgery, destruction of evidence, and violations under the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988.
Case Details
The case pertains to the alleged siphoning of government funds amounting to over Rs 75 crore from CREST bank accounts. The investigating agency alleged that the fraud was carried out by officials of IDFC First Bank in criminal conspiracy with certain public servants of CREST. The misappropriated funds were allegedly diverted through shell entities and routed to private individuals who are suspected to have benefited from the transactions.
CBI officials said the investigation has revealed a well-planned conspiracy involving bank officials, government employees, and private persons. The agency added that further investigation is underway and additional chargesheets are likely to be filed as more evidence emerges.
Related Investigations
The CREST case is one of three major financial fraud investigations that were transferred to the CBI. The agency had taken over one case from the Haryana State Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Bureau involving eight departments of the Haryana government and two cases from the Economic Offences Police Station, Chandigarh, relating to Chandigarh Smart City Limited (CSCL) and CREST.
The CBI has already filed two chargesheets against 17 accused in the Haryana government funds misappropriation case and one chargesheet against seven accused in the CSCL case. With the filing of the latest chargesheet in the CREST matter, a total of 13 accused have been brought before the court in the case so far.
